Hollywood has helped create more than a few memorable heroes. As we’ll explore below, some of these famous characters have come from a single creator, including those like George Lucas. Other times, action heroes don’t spring from the imagination of an individual, but are actually a product of a certain era and set of cultural circumstances.
Depending on the latter, just about anyone can become an action hero. For example, Christopher Nolan introduced the world to a new type of action hero in Inception, which added a surreal and metaphysical twist to the MC’s journey. One that involved chase scenes that defy gravity and plotlines that transcend reality. In other words, audiences are willing to ‘go out on a limb’ to meet their next favorite hero.
But that doesn’t mean there aren’t a few examples that writers and creators will draw inspiration from. Looking back over decades of Hollywood releases, here are a few of the most famous and successful heroes of all time.
Harrison Ford Put in Double the Hours
Above, we mentioned George Lucas, the mind behind hits like Star Wars and Indiana Jones. In both cases, one actor depicted heroes Hans Solo and Indiana Jones: Harrison Ford. Solo was a bad-boy agent in a space war, a secondary character alongside Luke Skywalker, while Jones was a bit more hands-on in steering the action genre in Hollywood.
In fact, Indiana Jones (first depicted in 1981’s Raiders of the Lost Ark) has become such a cultural icon that he’s been immortalized in projects that don’t even involve Ford. For example, after the franchise took off, characters like Lara Croft (Tomb Raider) and Nathan Drake (Uncharted) were highly attractive to audiences.
Today, even online slots like Book of Dead depict characters in settings that fit well with Indiana Jones’ endless archeological adventures. Though the main character in Book of Dead is named Rich Wilde instead of Indiana Jones, he’s on a similar adventure that players will find familiar.
James Bond: A Question of Preference
Indiana Jones and Hans Solo helped steer interest in action heroes thanks to the work of Harrison Ford. However, not all heroes have been depicted by the same actor. In the case of James Bond, a spy agent born from Brit Ian Fleming’s book series, the franchise has benefitted from multiple actors filling the role.
In fact, there’s a large debate that rages about which actor did the best job. Many long-time fans favor the first actor to take on the role back in the 1960s, Sean Connery, while many others favor the most recent actor, Daniel Craig. Because each actor has put their own spin on this action hero, Bond morphs every time there’s a new film release. Though this bucks tradition from other action franchises, it seems to have worked well for Bond.
The Next Generation of Action Heroes
So far, we’ve covered two of Hollywood’s most iconic action heroes—first an actor who portrayed two famous characters on-screen and another fictional character from a book series. But what can future audiences expect from action projects in Hollywood? For now, it looks like Lucas is wrapping up his Indiana Jones franchise with its final release. Meanwhile, Bond will get a reboot once the next actor has been selected.
However, it seems like the future of action films might take a metaphysical turn. Above, we pointed out how Nolan’s Inception (2010) introduced a new and more visionary approach to action. This has been mirrored in other projects, from the expanding (and increasingly complex) Marvel Universe to smaller projects like the latest Space Jam (2021), which saw its cast trapped in a virtual world and pitted against an algorithm.
Most recently, the hit film Everything Everywhere All At Once highlighted the appeal of this type of action-based emphasis on interdimensional challenges. The film took home close to a dozen awards, including seven Academy Awards. Interestingly enough, the film starred Ke Huy Quan, who starred alongside Harrison Ford as Short Round in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.